Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34591838›Full record

ArticlePLoS biology2021

Mathematical learning deficits originate in early childhood from atypical development of a frontoparietal brain network.

Ulrike Kuhl, Sarah Sobotta, Legascreen Consortium, Michael A Skeide

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in PLoS biology, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
6citing papers in PubMed
3.8field-weighted citation impact, top 5% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

6 citing papers in PubMed, 26 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Article
  2. Lesion-symptom mapping reveals differential relationships between language and precise versus approximate numeracy.Cortex; a journal devoted to the study of the nervous system and behavior · 2025
    Article
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. Article
  6. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Ulrike KuhlResearch Group Learning in Early Childhood, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany.ORCID 0000-0002-9405-918X
Sarah SobottaResearch Group Learning in Early Childhood, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany.
Legascreen Consortium
Michael A SkeideResearch Group Learning in Early Childhood, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany.ORCID 0000-0001-5027-2811
Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences · DEBielefeld University · DE

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Mathematical learning deficits are defined as a neurodevelopmental disorder (dyscalculia) in the International Classification of Diseases. It is not known, however, how such deficits emerge in the course of early brain development. Here, we conducted functional and structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) experiments in 3- to 6-year-old children without formal mathematical learning experience. We followed this sample until the age of 7 to 9 years, identified individuals who developed deficits, and matched them to a typically developing control group using comprehensive behavioral assessments. Multivariate pattern classification distinguished future cases from controls with up to 87% accuracy based on the regional functional activity of the right posterior parietal cortex (PPC), the network-level functional activity of the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), and the effective functional and structural connectivity of these regions. Our results indicate that mathematical learning deficits originate from atypical development of a frontoparietal network that is already detectable in early childhood.

Indexed as

BrainBrain MappingChildChild DevelopmentChild, PreschoolDyscalculiaFemaleHumansLongitudinal StudiesMagnetic Resonance ImagingMaleNeural PathwaysParietal LobePrefrontal Cortex

Identifiers

PMID34591838
PMCPMC8509954
OpenAlexW3204270376

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.